The Rio Olympics kicks off in early August and this time fans will be able to watch events in virtual reality via the Samsung Gear VR.
VR technology is getting popular in many industries such as gaming, movies and sports. Olympics is one of the greatest sporting events and watching it in VR will be a new experience for sport fans.
On June 30, Samsung and NBC Olympics jointly announced that 85 hours of VR content will be available to experience on the Samsung headset. The programming will be captured by Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) and supplied to NBC Olympics.
Olympics enthusiasts will be able to view a number of events including gymnastics, beach volleyball, boxing, diving, track and field, fencing, the Opening and Closing Ceremonies and other highlights on the Gear VR.
VR content for the 2016 Rio Olympics will be programmed from Aug. 6 until Aug. 22.
"Fans of the Olympics will now get to experience the world's best athletes as they compete in some of the most popular events of Rio 2016 in a whole new way: through virtual reality," said Marc Mathieu, Chief Marketing Officer at Samsung Electronics America.
Samsung released the Gear VR in November 2015. The headset seamlessly works with Samsung smartphones, as users just need to slip in their mobile phone in the Gear VR to start experiencing VR content.
However, the Gear VR is compatible only with a handful of Samsung smartphones including the Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 edge, Galaxy Note 5, Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge.
The VR content from the Rio Olympics will be accessible only through the NBC Sports app, which is available as a free download from the Google Play Store. Customers who are going to use the app will have access to more than 3,000 NBC Sports, NBCSN, Golf Channel and Comcast Sports Network events.
Users should note, however, that the NBC Sports app will work only for customers who have subscribed to the TV channel.
Olympics is not the first event that will be covered in VR as some NBA games have already been available on VR. Fox Sports also broadcast VR streams from the U.S. Open at Oakmont in June this year.
The availability of a sporting event on Gear VR is great for Samsung fans. The Gear VR has a price tag of $99.99 in the United States, which makes it affordable for many customers. Samsung will hope that the demand for the VR headset in the United States will see a spike as the date for the Rio Olympics nears.
